Senior anthropology majors Shannon Friere, of Glens Falls, NY, and
Emily Stanfill, of Littleton, CO, studied in Italy during the fall
semester, 2007, and gave Professor of Anthropology Ali Pomponio -- in
Italy on a Fulbright Fellowship -- and Emeritus Professor of Anthropology
Richard Perry a tour of the areas they studied.

Freire and Stanfill were in Italy from July through the end of 2007,
studying Etruscan archaeology, especially Orvieto's underground
labyrinth of caves in the heart of its Medieval quarter. After a long
term of relative neglect, the caves have been researched relatively
recently; the were used for wine cellars, dovecote and to dig wells for water.
The combination of storage space and water supply made Orvieto, built on a
cliff, virtually impregnable, allowing the Etruscans to withstand a lengthy
seige by Romans.

The students are expected to give a presentation on their research on campus in
the spring semester of 2008.

Pomponio, a Fulbright Scholar, is spending the 2007-2008 academic year in
Siena, Italy. Based at the University of Siena, Pomponio is conducting
research, teaching and lecturing. She spent a year of study there as an
undergraduate, earning her bachelor's degree from SUNY Geneseo with a
double-major in Italian language and literature and anthropology.
Pomponio also conducted research in Siena for her master's degree
thesis, from Bryn Mawr College. Her plans include team-teaching with a
colleague at the university a graduate course, Ritual, Festivals and
Performance: Comparing American and European Approaches; offering
several public presentations on topics related to her work; and
continuing research on the Palio, a horse race and pageant with
medieval roots. In addition, Pomponio plans to teach a new course when
she returns to St. Lawrence, on the arts and culture of the Italian
Renaissance.